{"type":"rich","version":"1.0","provider_name":"Transistor","provider_url":"https://transistor.fm","author_name":"House of Folk Art","title":"Episode 39 | Wade Ledbetter: A Picker's Life & Salt Glaze Pottery Lesson","html":"<iframe width=\"100%\" height=\"180\" frameborder=\"no\" scrolling=\"no\" seamless src=\"https://share.transistor.fm/e/c3481109\"></iframe>","width":"100%","height":180,"duration":2868,"description":"Matt sits down with his father Wade Ledbetter, the legendary picker whose exploits have become House of Folk Art folklore. From walking to school with a .22 rifle to sleeping with shotguns in dangerous hotel rooms, Wade shares raw stories from the golden age of picking when there was no internet, no cell phones, and pickers ruled the auction house circuit.\nThe conversation covers Wade's transition from insurance salesman to full-time picker, the electric atmosphere at John Lambert's Mebane auction house, and the legendary finds that made other pickers rich while Wade and Matt struggled. Hear about the John Singer Sargent discovery, and the William Merritt Chase painting that sold for $750,000.\nThe episode concludes with an intensive salt glaze pottery lesson as Matt prepares Sully for Liberty Antique Festival. Learn to distinguish Timothy Boggs drips from contemporary pieces, understand why N. Fox is better than H. Fox, and discover how 1800s potters shared techniques and stamps. From canning jar forms to dramatic alkaline glazes, this is your crash course in Piedmont North Carolina pottery.\nWhat you'll learn:\nThe dangerous reality of 1990s picking trips and cheap hotel roomsHow auction house time slots sold for $500 during the golden eraThe picking partnership dynamics and money-splitting rulesSalt glaze vs alkaline glaze pottery identification tipsWhy signed pottery commands premium prices and which potters to seekThe collaborative nature of 19th-century pottery production\nFollow @houseoffolkart and get ready for Liberty – but don't buy junk or Matt will hit it with a baseball bat.\nChapters:\n00:00 | Wade Ledbetter introduction and school rifle stories\n00:31 | Early Picking Days – insurance sales to antique partnerships\n02:58 | Dangerous Hotel Stories – shotguns, strangers, and picking safety\n07:45 | The Golden Auction Era – Mebane's electric atmosphere and picker competition\n11:07 | Pottery Cycles – why Thomas Richie now costs $200 instead of $1,200\n13:54 | The...","thumbnail_url":"https://img.transistorcdn.com/V9-9EJUZ9R45flfIBnsuQ4AwapFGe_rYKiVr1IMQwbU/rs:fill:0:0:1/w:400/h:400/q:60/mb:500000/aHR0cHM6Ly9pbWct/dXBsb2FkLXByb2R1/Y3Rpb24udHJhbnNp/c3Rvci5mbS9zaG93/LzUxNTk0LzE3MTE3/Mzc2MTktYXJ0d29y/ay5qcGc.webp","thumbnail_width":300,"thumbnail_height":300}